Expired Ingredients Filled Inside Refrigerator
Kindergarten Denies, Saying "Reported Out of Grudge"
A disclosure has emerged that a kindergarten in Gyeongbuk prepared food for children using unsanitary ingredients. On the 28th, JTBC's 'Case Manager' aired the story of a woman in her 50s, Ms. A, who worked as a cook at the kindergarten. She had previously run her own business but closed it due to the impact of COVID-19 and was hired as a cook at a kindergarten in Gyeongbuk in March last year. Although she held a cook’s license, she was assigned only dishwashing and menial tasks daily, so she never had the chance to open the kitchen refrigerator.
Then Ms. A witnessed a shocking scene. The existing cook, Ms. B, would pour sesame oil on the food and then lick the bottle with her tongue. This was not a one-time occurrence; every time she used sesame oil, Ms. B licked the bottle with her mouth. Upon witnessing this, Ms. A told the director, "The kitchen cook licked the sesame oil bottle with her tongue. It’s not just once or twice." The director responded, "I immediately checked. It’s absolutely unacceptable, and strict measures were taken."
But it did not end there. Ms. A happened to open the refrigerator door and found mold growing on snacks meant for the children. She told 'Case Manager,' "I took out bananas to give as snacks to the kids, but they were in terrible condition, even moldy." She added, "The director happened to pass by, so I asked, 'How can you use bananas like this?' but she just said to give them anyway."
She continued, "When I said to the kitchen staff, 'Isn’t this too much?' they said it was fine and that bananas taste better when they are very ripe," expressing her disbelief. Not only the bananas, but the refrigerator was also full of expired ingredients. The problem was that these ingredients were actually used. When controversy arose, the kindergarten denied it, saying, "Ingredients can change after delivery. We never fed food made from those ingredients to the children." Ms. A claimed she took photos of the ingredients just before disposal and reported them.
It was not the end. Mr. A happened to open the refrigerator door and found mold growing on the snacks meant for the children. [Photo by JTBC 'Sageonbanjang']
Not only food but also moldy aprons, rusty tongs, and cooking utensils
It wasn’t just the food that was rotten. Ms. A said, "I was very displeased that the kitchen lady wore a moldy apron," adding, "It wasn’t just a little mold; it was completely rotten. She had been wearing that apron since 2022." She added, "I didn’t notice it because I was only doing my own work. One day, the lady took off the apron, and I saw it then."
The kitchen utensils were also in terrible condition. The frying pan's coating was completely peeled off, and the tongs were fully rusted. [Photo by JTBC 'Sageon Banjang']
The kitchen utensils were also in poor condition. The frying pans had all their coating peeled off, and the tongs were completely rusted. Regarding this, the director said, "It’s difficult to freely allocate the budget," but also explained, "We replaced everything recently." There was also an incident of food supplies being siphoned off. Although 30 boxes of strawberries arrived, only 5 boxes were given to the children, and the remaining 25 boxes were reportedly shared among the director and teachers.
It was also revealed that abalone was separately stored in the refrigerator for staff use. The director stated, "We did not siphon off food supplies; since the cleaning lady helps out, we occasionally gave her some of those ingredients." She also claimed that Ms. A had a bad relationship with Ms. B and reported out of spite.
Netizens who heard the story reacted with anger, saying things like, "They make a qualified cook do dishwashing in front of acquaintances," "I was horrified to see someone licking the sesame oil bottle," "We would never have known if it weren’t for the report," "Can’t they even tell the difference between rotten and ripe bananas?" "Are there still kindergartens like this? They should be inspected without notice," and "Please investigate the director thoroughly. Directors and teachers like that should never be allowed to do the same thing again."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
